BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia has asked standing committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy to continue organisational activities, and assured him of taking steps regarding his reported resentment over a party matter, party insiders said yesterday.

A parliamentary body yesterday turned down its sub-committee's recommendation for scrapping the proposed real estate law's provision for jail sentences to realtors developing and advertising projects without approval.

Breaching the law on political parties' registration, the Election Commission yesterday decided to give ruling Awami League and 16 other political parties two more months to submit their financial transaction reports.

A Dhaka court yesterday granted two more months to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to complete the investigation into one of the two cases filed for the August 21 grenade attacks on an Awami League rally in 2004.

The High Court yesterday in a verdict acquitted Faisal Morshed Khan, son of former BNP foreign minister M Morshed Khan, of a corruption case in which he was earlier convicted and sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment.

Editorial

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's categorical statement to her cabinet colleagues that her government has no intention of banning region-based political parties should set at rest all speculation about it in the wake of the HC's invalidation of the fifth amendment. What particularly strikes a responsive chord in all right-thinking people keeping welfare of the nation upper most in their mind is her reasoning behind her decision. Her argument is that if banned, politics of such denomination would go underground. She sagaciously visualises that when driven underground such politics could acquire all clandestine implications with portents for wreaking havoc on national psyche, let alone fuelling militancy.

The student-police clash at Chittagong University was most unwarranted. The violence, which erupted between the police and the agitating students, who were protesting the hike in tuition fees, appears to us a matter of administrative failure too. A large number of students and policemen have suffered injuries, apart from the fact that several vehicles were also damaged during the clash. Understandably, the situation came to such a violent state after the police intercepted a student procession in the campus.

Sports

All the giants of the professional football league have already brought their respective squads in good shape, having ensured the services of country's top booters, leaving the lightweights worried about their ability to form squads that will be able to avoid relegation.

Milestone man Sachin Tendulkar on Tuesday became the most-capped Test cricketer in the world after taking field for his 169th match, the third and final of the ongoing series against Sri Lanka, at the P Sara Oval in Colombo.

Having emphatically completed a 354-run victory against Pakistan in the first Test, England have stuck with the men who delivered the job and named an unchanged squad for the second match, which begins on Friday at Edgbaston.

Champions Fakirerpool Young-men's Club played out a 2-2 draw against Wari Club in the lone super league match of the Bashundhara Metropolis Senior Division Football at the Bir Shreshtha Shaheed Sepoy Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur yesterday.

Roberto Baggio, one of Italy's finest ever players, is set to return to football, joining Italy's football federation (FIGC) after the national team's disastrous exit from the World Cup, the local press reported on Tuesday.

Andy Roddick is finding his form after being knocked-out in the fourth round at Wimbledon, the ninth-ranked US star bolstered by a solid workout on Monday ahead of his opener at the ATP Washington Classic.

Business

Consumers cannot buy sugar at the price set by the refiners and millers last week -- but the commerce minister says it is up to the people to protest against grocers who hiked the price, expecting a pre-Ramadan surge in demand.

A condolence message in The Daily Star mentioned, Altaf Karim, the regional compliance officer of a European multinational in Bangladesh, died of cardiac arrest recently at the city's United Hospital. He was only 49. I knew Altaf Karim since early nineties -- an extremely polite professional and a God-fearing person. He used to work for the company's finance and treasury functions. This ever-smiling person, Altaf bhai, was doing a great job, always going beyond the boxes to serve his company's interest to the highest possible level. I even didn't know that he was transferred to compliance division. No doubt, Altaf was the best person to handle a long laundry list of duties. But again, it was a tough, unpleasant and possibly a thankless job, in a country where 'right and wrong' is interpreted in many ways or in a company, which faced reputation issues in the recent past. Altaf Karim might have some health complications. However, I feel stress also had a significant role to play here.

It happens every year. When monsoon rains lash Mumbai, the city turns into a cesspool, which along with its potholed roads and gridlocked traffic, mocks its ambition of becoming a global financial centre.

Second-quarter results released Tuesday by German luxury car maker BMW underscored the change in fortunes seen by high end auto groups in the past year, with a net profit that was seven times stronger.

Pfizer Inc reported higher-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue, and the world's biggest drugmaker said its full-year profit will be at top end of its prior view as savings accrue from its recent merger with Wyeth.

RELIANCE INSURANCEThe insurer in its unaudited half yearly accounts until June 30 reported net profit of Tk 99.45 million with earnings per share (EPS) of Tk 32.69 against Tk 53.98 million and Tk 17.74 (restated) respectively for the same period of the previous year. Net profit was Tk 43.19 million with EPS of Tk 14.20 for the period of three months to June 30 against Tk 7.59 million and Tk 2.49 (restated) respectively for the same a-year-ago period.

BNP will hold a rally tomorrow at the capital's Muktangon protesting the remark of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina about the main Opposition Leader Khaleda Zia and filing cases against the party leaders including its Secretary General Khandaker Delwar Hossain.

A Dhaka court yesterday placed Advocate Montu Ghosh, adviser of the Garment Sramik Trade Union Kendra, on an 11-day remand in connection with five cases filed on charge of creating unrest in the readymade garment sector.

Six Arsenic Removal Technologies have been approved for sale in the country by the Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR) for the first time to help ensure pure drinking water for the people, says a press release.

Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan yesterday came down heavily upon Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (Wasa) for its negligence and failure to preserve the canals of the city and giving way to illegal occupation.

Speakers at a human chain programme yesterday called for building integrated rail communication system in the country in order to reduce road accidents as well as reducing transportation costs and environmental pollution.

A Dhaka court yesterday placed acting chief of banned militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) Anwar Alam, also known as Nazmul and Bhagne Shahid, on a four-day remand in connection with a case on an attempt on life of Prof Humayun Azad.

Police initiatives are underway to bring back remaining six fugitive killers of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as most of them were traced down under Interpol vigil and manhunts through diplomatic channels. Five of their fellow convicts were hanged in January this year.

A project of Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS) was awarded the first prize in the category of medium size organisation for the year 2010 by the Flora Family Foundation of USA, says a press release.

A case was filed against Dhaka Sector Commander Aziz Ahammed of Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) and six others on charges of grabbing a land and assaulting the complainant and other residents of the land in the city.

An activist of Jamaat Debhata upazila unit was arrested yesterday while seven leaders and activists of Jamaat and Shibir, arrested on July 17 in Sadar upazila, were taken on a three-day remand the same day.

A jute mill worker tied two hapless boys to a tree and beat them severely, suspecting their involvement in the theft of his cellphone at Damodar village under Phultala upazila of Khulna district on Monday.

Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) and Indian Border Security Force (BSF) at a battalion commander-level meeting at Dauki (opposite to Tamabil border) in the Indian state of Meghalaya yesterday agreed to maintain peace in border areas of Sylhet.

Two suspected robbers were beaten to death by a mob in Sadar upazila of Gazipur early yesterday. The deceased were identified as Moksed, 30, son of Mohammad Ali of Ashulia area in the capital and Sujan, 25, son of Tofazzal Hossain of Dinajpur. Sources said, an armed gang entered the house of Abul Hossain breaking open the door at midnight in Nesipara area. The house owner informed the matter to some neighbours over cell phone. The villagers rushed to the scene and chased the criminals and at one stage managed to catch Moksed and Sujan. The angry villagers gave them a good thrashing, leaving them dead on the spot.

Indian Border Security Force (BSF) handed over two Bangladeshi young girls, who were trafficked to India, to Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) through Benapole check post yesterday afternoon. The returnees are Parvin Begum, 15, of Morelganj, Bagerhat and Rebeka Khatun, 16, of Sadar upazila, Satkhira. BDR sources said, some brokers trafficked Parvin and Rebeka to India through Benapole border on February 15, 2009, promising to give them good jobs there. Kolkata police rescued them from Shealdah railway station and sent them to jail. Rights Jessore, a human rights organisation brought them back after they were informed by an NGO named A R Z International on February 26 this year.

Two labourers died from poisonous gas while cleaning a septic tank at a residential building in the municipal area of Kahalu upazila on Monday morning. The deceased were identified as Azhar Ali, 45, and Shafiqul Islam, 25, of the area. Sources said, three men went to clean a safety tank at about 10am at the building at Sajatia. As Shafiqul entered the tank he fell unconscious. At this two other cleaners got into the tank to rescue Shafiqul but Azhar met the same fate while Gafur became sick due to gas poisoning. Officer-in-charge (OC) of Kahalu police station said the two might have died of inhaling carbon monoxide (CO) gas inside the septic tank.

Hajee Danesh Science and Technology University (HSTU) will reopen today after 34 days of closure. Earlier on Monday the university authorities unlocked the dormitories of the university for residential students. Meanwhile, the university authorities imposed a restriction on any sort of procession and rally on the campus. On June 30 last, the university was closed sine die following a series of incidents demanding withdrawal of punishment to 15 students. The students were punished for violating university disciplines.

Letters

It is commendable that the government has declared a minimum salary structure for our poor garment workers. But before we make a big deal out of this, there is something very important that we all need to remember: this is Bangladesh! We all know how things are done in Bangladesh, don't we?

Garbage containing nearly 80 percent used plastic bags has become a major problem along the 840 miles of California coastline. Authorities are processing a bill to impose a ban on the single-use of plastic bags by grocery stores, pharmacies, etc. If the bill is passed in the Senate, paper bags will be given to the customers by shops at a cost of minimum five cents per bag. And most of these bags will be recycled. Good move indeed!

I was a government employee who had some experience of working with Mr. Mannan Bhuyan in various capacities. On the other hand, Mannan Bhuyan was an influential minister for the Local Government and Secretary General of one of the major parties of the country. Yet he attained the stature beyond his political prowess which most of the leaders of present time lack.

The decision of imposing 4.5% VAT on the private universities is a very wise decision of this government. Because in some cases, the owners of these institutions are making profit much higher than the industrialists (albeit most of them claim their organisations to be non-profit). These universities are taking tens of thousands of taka from the students as tuition fees (most of the time without showing any logical reason).They increase their tuition fees now and then without any permission from UGC or relevant authorities. So it is not VAT on education, rather VAT on business.

The written test for selection of candidates for the post of assistant teachers of government high schools was postponed due to the allegation of question paper leakage. It was reported that some BG Press employees and officials were involved in the leakage and a syndicate had long been involved in it. We hope the government would take tough action against the culprits so that no one in future thinks about it. However, the candidates for the post of assistant teachers of government high schools are now highly frustrated as the govt. has not yet fixed the fresh date for the exams. On the other hand, the govt. schools have been facing a lot of problems due to teacher shortage. At the very beginning of this year, the govt. ordered opening of double- shift classes in 80 schools at the district level. As there is shortage of teachers in those schools, the authorities of those schools started double shift classes only in the entry classes. Without recruiting an adequate number of teachers it is not possible to start double shift in all classes.

I agree with Biman's Managing Director because some people say that statistics is the trade of 'tricks' or 'treats' depending on the subject and on the audience looking at it. Regarding growth of air travel market in Bangladesh, the MD should have given some idea about the market growth, both for the local as well as overseas flights from Dhaka. Biman is the direct descendent of the erstwhile PIA, which was in those (East Pakistan) days, called “Perhaps. It Arrives”! It was surprising that the MD did not provide any breakdown data on market growth, to that extent his remarks were subjective!

As a nuclear engineer, I appreciate Engr. S.A. Mansoor's promotion of Pebble Bed Reactors (PBRs) for heat or power generation (Dec. 13). It is one of the six concepts being investigated for Generation IV rectors (current reactors operating round the world being of the Generation II and III type). Generation IV reactors are not expected to be available for commercial operation before 2030.

A report published in The Daily Star on 27 July entitled “Students block road, vandalize vehicles in city” stated that students of some specific private universities were involved in the road blocking and vandalism at Mohakhali area on 26 July to protest against VAT on tuition fees. The report specifically mentioned the names of some institutions quoting: “Students of North South University, East West University, American International University Bangladesh (AIUB), Brac University, Dhaka International University and other private universities took to the streets around 1:00pm demanding withdrawal of 4.5 percent VAT slapped on their tuition and other fees.”

We are being told that people from all walks of life are expressing their indignation due to imposition of VAT on different services. VAT, imposed even on education, resulted in a 5-hour jam on Mohakhali Uttara road on that day. It is pertinent that to broaden the tax net imposition of VAT is necessary. But the impact of tax burden on the people must be considered.

As the electricity supply is not stable these days, mosques in the city are making alternative arrangements to keep the power supply steady during the holy month of Ramadan so that the devotees can offer Tarabi prayers comfortably. The Imam of Mohammadpur Jame Masjid for the last two weeks has been appealing for generous donations from devotees to help buy an electricity generator. Last Friday, after Jummah prayer, the Imam while appreciating the devotees' response had once again appealed for donations because the price of a generator was yet to be raised.

Suranjit Sengupta , Chief of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Law Ministry, at a press briefing at the Jatiya Sangsad media centre said the constitution of the country did not authorize the Chief Justice to evaluate the past of the judges who have been appointed. The Supreme Judicial Council and other bodies were there for this purpose.

I do not understand how our city police commissioner still has his job. On Thursday night our LGRD minister went on record warning of a possible RMG labour unrest due to the newly declared wages, yet we saw what happened on Friday morning. I mean in any other civilized country the Commissioner would have lost his job for failing to prevent the chaos in and around Gulshan. Moreover, he has gone on record saying none would be spared and so onafter the heavy losses suffered by businessmen.

Most people accuse the private cars of contributing to traffic jam but the question is whether public transport is a better alternative. The answer is definitely “NO” .the public buses are overcrowded , broken and dirty and the risk of losing something is always there. People often hang to the doors and getting in and getting down from the bus is really very hard. Whereas private cars are also cheaper now after the CNG conversion started . The comfort is always there and most importantly the turmoil in transportation compared to the public transport is minimum . Of course the cars are faster and safer as the commuters don't have to wait in the long queue.

A big controversy is going on for the last few months about the wages of the garment workers. Only God knows when it will come to an end. The government has fixed it at Tk. 3,000. per month. To general public like me (not stakeholders in the sector), it is reasonable considering the pros and cons. I talked to many owners of garment industries and most of them vehemently oppose this minimum wage for different reasons. I agree with their point like our workers' efficiency is much less than others', bank interests are too high here, higher shipment costs with many uncertainties etc. But when I see the increase in minimum wages of Chinese workers to $140. (about Tk 10,000), Thailand's $ 70.00, Vietnam's $60.00 and Cambodia's $50.00, why are we afraid of paying only $40.00? If our workers' efficiency is less, then industry management must find out means to improve it and if they cannot, then they must not adjust their failure with the hard labour of workers. If our workers are best certified in Korea, Japan and Singapore, then why do garment industry owners here fail to make the best use of them?

It has been reported that spurious and time barred medicines are available in rural markets. These medicines are sold in grocery shops, even in tea stalls. The government must handle the matter with a sense of urgency as it has a great bearing on the lives of people.

Arts & Entertainment

In Bangladesh, piracy is a rampant issue affecting intellectual property. Artistes, musician, composers -- music industry on the whole -- are being victimised by this unfair practice by vested groups. Artistes feel the need to figure out an effective way out of this situation.

South Asia is a region that often grapples with the problem of communal and ethnic divides. The issue has been dealt with in the cinema of the region and some leading directors, including Bangladesh's Tanvir Mokammel, who have made films on this, are coming together later this month in the western Indian city of Pune to share their experiences and views.

The first International Dance Festival is on in Delhi from August 2 to 4. The festival brings together the cream of foreign dance talents trained in Indian classical dance -- be it Odissi, Kathak, Bharatna-tyam, Kuchipudi, Mohiniya-ttam, or Kathakali. The artistes come from countries as diverse as Malaysia, Indonesia, Germany, Russia, China, Mauritius and South Africa .

OP-ED

In the end, Begum Khaleda Zia remained convinced that Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan was guilty of treachery. In her view, he had not merely undermined the Bangladesh Nationalist Party by his moves to reform the way it worked. His acts were also instrumental in having her two sons suffer at the hands of the Fakhruddin caretaker administration.

An advisory opinion was sought from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague by the UN General Assembly in October 2008 under Article 96 of the UN Charter when Serbia questioned the unilateral declaration of independence of Kosovo on February 17, 2008.

We might all have missed the point about the Commonwealth Games (CWG); the problem is not in the games but in the Commonwealth. Britain took the event seriously when it began life as the Empire Games, for it was a good opportunity to find out how the natives were getting along in approved pursuits. Even the queen is no longer interested in a collection of countries that don't take orders from her, have little in common and less by way of wealth.

Anuclear horror is spreading over the whole Asian region. The forgotten mushroom clouds of Hiroshima and Nagashaki are looming again. Some people may express concern and some may laugh at the fear of a nuclear war, but it is evident that nuclear arsenals are growing all over the world, including Asia. The nuclear capabilities of Iran and DPR Korea are making news headlines, and causing grave concerns for the Pentagon as both of them are anti US. The nuclear ambition and achievement of South Korea was not mentioned much by US administration.

Ever since our independence, we have been suffering from the lack of an efficient and effective administration. However, we overcame the initial rehabilitation and reconstruction of a completely devastated economy with a majority of our public servants lacking in experience, knowledge and skill when performing tasks for a newly independent government. Thus, it would be wrong to blame public servants for administrative failures immediately after liberation.

"Anything is possible" is a cliché, but it is easier to say than to do. One has to understand the depth of such concept to change one's attitude and practice. National Professor Dr. Qazi Motahar Hussain (my grandfather) did so at a very early age, and attained a very high position in the educational sector, a platform larger than life. Dr. Q. M. Hussain followed or understood three things in life to become a man of recognition with many abilities; (a) quest and need for knowledge (b) where there is a will there is a way, and (c) adopt the right attitude and anything is possible.